elements of design assignment

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WI State Standards:

• AA Cr10h Investigate: Engage in critical thinking, problem solving, and research through elements and principles of art and design studio practices and processes. (aesthetics / problem solving)
• AA Cr11h Plan: Formulate original concepts by practice, experimentation, and revision. (planning/experimentation)
• AA Cr12h Make: Create works of art that introduce students to media, care of tools, and basic craftsmanship skills. (skills)

what will you learn?

The elements and principles of design are the building blocks used to create a work of art.

Elements of Art are the visual "tools" that artists use to create an art work - they are what makes up an image or an art object: line, shape/form, value, color, space, and texture.

Principles of Design are the ways artists use the Elements of Art in an artwork - this is "what we do with the Elements" - how we arrange them, how we balance them, what is being emphasized, etc. The principles are: balance, contrast, repetition, emphasis, and unity.

elements of art

Elements of Art are the visual "tools" that artists use to create an art work

Artists manipulate these elements, mix them in with principles of design and compose a piece of art. Not every work has every last one of these elements contained within it, but there are always at least two present.

For example, a sculptor, by default, has to have both form and space in a sculpture, because these elements are three-dimensional. They can also be made to appear in two-dimensional works through the use of perspective and shading.

There are six Elements of Art:

• Shape / Form

principles of design

Principles of Design are the ways artists use and arrange the Elements of Art in a composition.

The Principles of design is what we do to the elements of art. How we apply the Principles of design determines how successful we are in creating a work of art.

ASSIGNMENTS

Strange noise...

Imagination drawings

Limited drawing

Popcorn factory

About me Mind Map

formative assignments (practice)

Line Repetition Design

Drawing with lines

Lines & Emotions

summative assignment

Focal point line drawing

Tangram basics

Tangram images

Name design

Hand study 1

Hand study 2

Flower study

Colored pencils

summative assignments

Tessellations

Value scale

Form construction & shading

Observational drawing

Grid drawing

White on Black

Half picture

Cutout shading

Pointillism

Layers and holes

Scratch art

Photorealism

Ribbon design

semester 1 evaluation

focus on value

focus on coloring skills

portfolio assessment

Landscape coloring

Color wheel practice

Color wheel

Color schemes

Practice color scheme

Color scheme designs

Color scheme triptych

color cubes

obscure color wheel

Monochromatic painting

Complementary painting

color scheme painting

color scheme portrait

1 point perspective

1 pt. perspective

additional w/s

Checkerboard

Post in perspective

1 pt grid plan

Name in perspective

Room in perspective

Buildings in 1 pt. perspective

2 point perspective

2 pt perspective

2 pt grid plan

3 point perspective

3 pt perspective

city block with a story

Texture Study

Textured apples

Texture patterns

Textured cylinder

Creative patterns

Optical design

Textured circles

semester 2 evaluation

skills assessment

focus on 3 elements

Balances design

Printmaking

pattern problem

patterns experiment

Pattern design

Subway train

Double drawing

Linoleum printing

Oil pastels

Wisconsin essential standards rubric

1. All assignments must be completed on or before the due date. 2. Unfinished artwork is graded as such. 3. If you are absent, it is your responsibility to make up all work. You can sign out art supplies if needed. 4. If your project requires extra time to be completed, you have to make arrangements with me prior the due date. This is your responsibility. 5. Each project has a rubric with specific requirements and guidelines. Follow them. 6. Unless an assignment specifically requires copying, it will be interpreted in the same manner as plagiarism. 7. You are also graded for your in-class studio work.

CLASSROOM RULES

1. Food, drinks, candy, gum are not allowed in the Art rooms. A bottle of WATER is permitted in room 206 (only). 2. Cell phones are not allowed at any time. Phones should be turned off and put away. 3. Be in the room before the bell rings. Dropping your stuff and leaving does not qualify you as being on time. 4. Sit at your assigned seat unless I give you OK to move. That means you do not walk around the room during the class. 5. Talk quietly with students at your table. Do not talk during the instructional time. 6. Draw, paint, etc. on your artwork only! 7. Use materials from your tote-tray only... don't go into other people's trays. 8. You can bring your work home anytime. You are responsible for having it back next day. 9. If you must swear, please do it elsewhere... Thanks. 10. You are responsible for cleaning your work area and the tools that you used. 11. If you are in the Graphics lab, use the printers for the current ART assignments only!!! 12. Encourage your fellow classmates in a positive way... treat them fairly and nicely. This room should be a fun and comfortable place for everyone.

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MMA 100: Foundations of Digital Graphic Design, Spring 2019

A BMCC OpenLab Staging Site

Assignment #2 – Elements & Principles

Assignment #2 – Elements & Principles

Assignment Specifications:  Students will generate a series of visual examples and solutions to define, communicate and illustrate the vocabulary of the elements & principles of design. Each term will display a visual example using the vocabulary below:

Elements – C olor, Line, Mass, Movement, Space, Texture, Type & Value

Principles – Balance, Contrast, Direction, Economy, Emphasis, Proportion, Rhythm & Unity

Size: –  8.5″ X 8.5″ – The final suggested design will be 2 composites of 8 squares composed and arranged by each student. (2 files will be created)

Working with Photoshop – Lets apply additional layers, filters and image manipulating techniques to customize our progress. Class demonstrations will take place on 2/13.

Part 1 – Student will first create a balanced layout in adobe photoshop. Images will be found from research and investigation via the Internet and class resources. Each term for the elements of design of design will be illustrated and applied by cutting, formatting and placing the example into a composite (the example below is simply one example, you can create your own)

Part 2 – Students will generate their own examples of each term using techniques learned in class with photoshop.

R&D – Where will you find visual inspiration and research? Add your links to the comments section below.

Production:

Students will prepare their final works in screen resolution format and  application on the web (RGB).

Due dates for next week:  We will be starting and working on and this project in class  beginning 2/13. The project will be due, completed and submitted by Wednesday 2/27

Blank Template example of the layout. (not including the border around the image)

2 thoughts on “Assignment #2 – Elements & Principles”

Here are some more places to find great selection of professional photos. It will help to avoid sifting through amateur photos on Google Images and help choose photos with higher quality and standards.

https://unsplash.com/ – high resolution photos https://burst.shopify.com/ – Lot of great stock images https://www.pexels.com/ https://pixabay.com/ – especially good for vector and illustration images, and even videos

Excellent, thanks so much for sharing these links!

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Welcome to the BMCC OpenLab!

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Digital Essentials

Spring 2018, elements & principles of design.

Presentation on  Components of an Artwork  (Subject/Form/Content/Context)

Link to online presentation.

Link to PDF of the above Principles of Design

• Line  – The way we treat our lines establishes a particular/dominant mood/emotion.
• Shape  – Flat, 2D aspects of form, as opposed to volume (think silhouette)
• Value/Tone  – Relative lightness or darkness
• Texture  – Can be  actual  or  implied
• Color  – (we won’t use color in Beginning Drawing)

PRINCIPLES:

• Unity/Harmony
• Movement  – How the artist leads the viewer’s eye around the page

Credit Link

ELEMENT DEFINITIONS:

Line:  The edge of a shape or form or the direction followed by anything in motion. -Implied Line- is a line that doesn’t really exist, but appears to be present. -Actual Line- is a line that is actually present.

Value:  Shadows from lightness to darkness -Value variation gives a sense of space and depth to an object—emphasizing its three dimensionality. -Strong contrast in value can create emphasis.

Color:  Color is Light reflected from a surface. It can create emphasis, harmony, emotions, unity, and movement. -Color has three distinct qualities: 1. Hue- color 2. Value- lightness to darkness of a color 3. Intensity- brightness to dullness of a color – mixing its complimentary color can dull intensity.

Texture:  Quality related closely to our sense of touch. It can create emphasis, movement, pattern, emotion. -Implied texture- is texture that appears to be present but it is an illusion. It is not really present. -Actual texture- is texture that really exists and it can be felt.

Shape:  Shape encloses a two dimensional area. Shape can create most of the elements and many of the principles. -Types of shapes: Organic-curved edges, continuous Geometric-sharp edges, angles

Form:  Form encloses a volume or three-dimensional area. -Light and dark value variations and space are used to emphasize form.

Space:  Illusion of depth and space. -Ways to create space: 1. Overlapping — Shapes or forms in front of each other 2. Holes and cavities

PRINCIPLE DEFINITIONS:

Balance:  Refers to the equalization of elements in a work of art. -There are three kinds of balance: 1. symmetrical- formal, divided in half same 2. asymmetrical- informal, divided in half not same 3. radial- circular, design starts from center > out

Unity/Harmony:  Relates to the sense of oneness, wholeness, or order in a work of art. Combining similar colors, shapes, lines, textures, and patterns in an artwork can create harmony. Movement: Refers to the arrangement of parts in a work of art to create a slow to fast action of the eye. -Pattern, contrast, line can create this.

Rhythm:  It is a type of movement in an artwork or design often created by repeated objects. -There are different types of rhythm: 1. Regular- Example: 9s9s9s9s9s9 2. Irregular- Example: qqeeqqeyyy

Emphasis:  refers to placing greater attention to certain areas or objects in a piece of work. -Emphasis can be created through sudden and abrupt changes in opposing elements. (Example: bright yellow dot in large black area)

Proportion:  Refers to the relationship of certain elements to the whole and to each other.

Pattern:  is created by repetition of (not limited to) shape, line, color, or texture

Variety:  It is achieved through diversity and change. Using different line types, colors, textures, shapes…..

Gradation:  Refers to a way of combining elements by using a series of gradual changes. -Examples of gradation: 1. gradually from small shapes to large shapes 2. gradually from a dark color to a light color 3. gradually from shadow to highlight

Elements and Principles of 4D Art and Design ,  by Ellen Mueller (Oxford University Press, 2016).

• Energy Dynamics
• Interactivity
• Simultaneity/Juxtaposition
• Spatial Relationships
• Tempo/Speed
• Transitions

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Design principles

What are design principles.

Design principles are guidelines, biases and design considerations that designers apply with discretion. Professionals from many disciplines—e.g., behavioral science, sociology, physics and ergonomics—provided the foundation for design principles via their accumulated knowledge and experience.

Design Principles – Laws with Leeway

Design principles are fundamental pieces of advice for you to make easy-to-use, pleasurable designs . You apply them when you select, create and organize elements and features in your work. 

Design principles represent the accumulated wisdom of researchers and practitioners in design and related fields. When you apply them, you can predict how users will likely react to your design. “KISS” (“Keep It Simple Stupid”) is an example of a principle where you design for non-experts and therefore minimize any confusion your users may experience.

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Franks Spillers’ design checklist is an example of customized design principles for mobile user experience (UX) design.

In user experience (UX) design , minimizing users’ cognitive loads and decision-making time is vital . The authors of Universal Principles of Design state that design principles should help designers find ways to improve usability, influence perception, increase appeal, teach users and make effective design decisions in projects .

You need a firm grasp of users’ problems and a good eye for how users will accept your solutions to apply design principles effectively . For instance, you don’t automatically use a 3:1 header-to-text weight ratio to abide by the principle of good hierarchy. That ratio is a standard rule . Instead, a guideline you might use to implement a good hierarchy is “text should be easy to read.” You should use discretion whenever you apply design principles to anticipate users’ needs – e.g., you judge how to guide the user’s eye using symmetry or asymmetry. Consequently, you adapt the principles to each case and build a solid experience as you address users’ needs over time .

“Design is not a monologue; it’s a conversation.” —Whitney Hess, Empathy coach and UX design consultant

Illustration of visual design elements and principles that include unity, Gestalt, hierarchy, balance, contrast, scale and dominance.

© Interaction Design Foundation, CC BY-SA 4.0

Types of Design Principles

Designers use principles such as visibility , findability and learnability to address basic human behaviors. We use some design principles to guide actions . Perceived affordances such as buttons are an example. That way, we put users in control of seamless experiences .

Usability kingpin Jakob Nielsen identified ten “commandments”:

Keep users informed of system status with constant feedback.

Set information in a logical, natural order .

Ensure users can easily undo/redo actions .

Maintain consistent standards so users know what to do next without learning new toolsets.

Prevent errors if possible ; wherever you can’t do this, warn users before they commit to actions.

Don’t make users remember information – keep options, etc., visible .

Make systems flexible so novices and experts can choose to do more or less on them.

Design with aesthetics and minimalism in mind – don’t clutter with unnecessary items.

Provide plain-language error messages to pinpoint problems and potential solutions.

Offer easy-to-search troubleshooting resources , if needed.

Empathy expert Whitney Hess adds:

1. Don’t interrupt or give users obstacles – make apparent pathways that offer an easy ride.

2. Offer few options – don’t hinder users with nice-to-haves; give them needed alternatives instead.

3. Reduce distractions – let users perform tasks consecutively, not simultaneously.

4. Group related objects together.

5. Have an easy-to-scan visual hierarchy that reflects users’ needs , with commonly used items handily available.

6. Make things easy to find.

7. Show users where they’ve come from and where they’re headed with signposts/cues.

8. Provide context – show how everything interconnects.

9. Avoid jargon .

10. Make designs efficient and streamlined.

11. Use defaults wisely – when you offer predetermined, well-considered options, you help minimize users’ decisions and increase efficiency.

12. Don’t delay users – ensure quick interface responses.

13. Focus on emotion – the pleasure of use is as vital as ease of use; arouse users’ passion for increasing engagement.

14. Use “less is more” – make everything count in the design. If functional and aesthetic elements don’t add to the user experience, forget them.

15. Be consistent with navigational mechanisms , organizational structure, etc., to make a stable, reliable and predictable design.

16. Create an excellent first impression .

17. Be trustworthy and credible – identify yourself through your design to assure users and eliminate the uncertainty.

Learn More about Design Principles

Several Interaction Design Foundation courses closely examine design principles, including Visual Design: The Ultimate Guide .

Whitney Hess examines Design Principles in her article Guiding Principles for UX Designers .

Find out more about the importance of Design Principles in mobile experiences in the article Mobile UX Design: Key Principles .

Questions related to design principles

The principles of design in art are foundational concepts that guide the creation and evaluation of artworks, ensuring visual harmony, balance, and cohesion. These principles include balance, contrast, emphasis, movement, pattern, rhythm, and unity/variety. Each principle plays a pivotal role in organizing or arranging the visual elements in a design, ultimately shaping the viewer's experience. For a deeper understanding and exploration of how these principles relate to visual aesthetics in art and design, refer to the chapter on Visual Aesthetics from the Encyclopedia of Human-Computer Interaction. This comprehensive resource provides insights into the interconnectedness of design principles in various mediums.

Color is not traditionally classified as a principle of design in art. However, color is essential in creating visual interest and evoking emotions in design. As Joann Eckstut, co-author of What Is Color? 50 Questions and Answers on the Science of Color and an interior designer, points out, the perception of color can change based on various factors like the light source and surrounding colors. 

For example, daylight constantly alters how we perceive colors, and different light sources like incandescent, LED, or fluorescent can shift color appearances. Also, colors can appear different depending on their background, a phenomenon known as simultaneous contrast. For an in-depth exploration of color's impact on design, watch the insightful video by Joann Eckstut on the topic.

Don Norman, a pioneer in user-centered design, emphasized creating strategies that align with how people think and function. Initially concerned about the complexity of early computer systems, he highlighted the significance of intuitive design. For instance, the early Unix systems had a text editor where users could lose work hours if they forgot to save. Norman's experience extended beyond computer systems to areas like nuclear power and aviation safety, where poor design could lead to grave consequences. His collaboration with NASA, a leading authority in aviation safety, underlined the importance of designing for the end user. To delve deeper into Don Norman's philosophy and principles, check out his detailed discourse in the video provided:

Emphasis in design principles refers to intentionally highlighting specific elements to draw attention and create a focal point. By manipulating contrast, color, size, or placement, designers can guide the viewer's eye to the most crucial parts of a composition. Emphasis ensures that certain design elements have more visual weight, allowing them to stand out and capture interest. This principle helps convey the main message, evoke emotions, or guide user behavior. For a deeper understanding of how designers create meaningful connections through emphasis and other principles, explore the article on empathizing in design at interaction-design.org.

Balance in design principles refers to the distribution of visual weight within a composition. It ensures that elements are arranged in a way that doesn't make one side feel heavier than another. 

Balance can be achieved symmetrically, where elements mirror each other on either side of a central axis, or asymmetrically, where elements provide equilibrium without mirroring. Achieving balance creates stability, harmony, and cohesion in a design. It ensures that viewers can engage with the content without feeling overwhelmed or distracted. For a deeper dive into the intricacies of visual composition, including balance, refer to the article on the building blocks of visual design at interaction-design.org.

Unity in design principles refers to the cohesive arrangement of elements that ensures all parts of a composition work together harmoniously. It's achieved when each element appears to be an integral part of the overall design, resulting in a complete and aesthetically pleasing piece. 

Unity helps guide the viewer's attention and ensures a consistent, integrated visual experience. The absence of unity can make a design feel disjointed or chaotic. To comprehend unity and other fundamental aspects of design, consider exploring the building blocks of visual design on interaction-design.org.

Hierarchy in design refers to the arrangement of elements in a way that signifies importance. It guides viewers' eyes, ensuring they focus on primary information first, followed by secondary and tertiary details. Designers establish a visual hierarchy by employing size, contrast, color, and spacing, directing attention and aiding comprehension.

As outlined in the visual hierarchy article on interaction-design.org, effective use of hierarchy follows natural eye movement patterns, enhancing user experience and making content more accessible and engaging. Properly implemented hierarchy ensures clarity and a seamless flow in design.

Design principles are crucial as they provide a foundation for creating compelling, organized, and impactful visuals. They guide how elements interact, ensuring consistency, proximity, and visual hierarchy, as highlighted in this video with Frank Spillers, CEO of Experience Dynamics. 

For instance, consistency ensures that controls remain uniform throughout a design, while proximity suggests related items be grouped. Visual hierarchy places importance on presenting the most vital information at the top. By understanding and applying these principles, designers can create intuitive, aesthetically pleasing, and practical designs that cater to user needs and preferences.

To dive deeper into design principles, consider enrolling in specialized courses offered by interaction-design.org. The Visual Design: The Ultimate Guide course provides comprehensive insights into visual elements and principles. For those new to the field, User Experience: The Beginner's Guide provides a foundational understanding of UX design principles. Furthermore, explore the intricate relationship between design and psychology with the Gestalt Psychology and Web Design: The Ultimate Guide course. These courses equip learners with knowledge and practical skills, ensuring a holistic grasp of design principles and their application.

Literature on design principles

Here’s the entire UX literature on design principles by the Interaction Design Foundation, collated in one place:

Learn more about design principles

Take a deep dive into Design Principles with our course Visual Design: The Ultimate Guide .

In this course, you will gain a holistic understanding of visual design and increase your knowledge of visual principles , color theory , typography , grid systems and history . You’ll also learn why visual design is so important, how history influences the present, and practical applications to improve your own work. These insights will help you to achieve the best possible user experience.

In the first lesson, you’ll learn the difference between visual design elements and visual design principles . You’ll also learn how to effectively use visual design elements and principles by deconstructing several well-known designs. 

In the second lesson, you’ll learn about the science and importance of color . You’ll gain a better understanding of color modes, color schemes and color systems. You’ll also learn how to confidently use color by understanding its cultural symbolism and context of use. 

In the third lesson, you’ll learn best practices for designing with type and how to effectively use type for communication . We’ll provide you with a basic understanding of the anatomy of type, type classifications, type styles and typographic terms. You’ll also learn practical tips for selecting a typeface, when to mix typefaces and how to talk type with fellow designers. 

In the final lesson, you’ll learn about grid systems and their importance in providing structure within design . You’ll also learn about the types of grid systems and how to effectively use grids to improve your work.

You’ll be taught by some of the world’s leading experts . The experts we’ve handpicked for you are the Vignelli Distinguished Professor of Design Emeritus at RIT R. Roger Remington , author of “American Modernism: Graphic Design, 1920 to 1960”; Co-founder of The Book Doctors Arielle Eckstut and leading color consultant Joann Eckstut , co-authors of “What Is Color?” and “The Secret Language of Color”; Award-winning designer and educator Mia Cinelli , TEDx speaker of “The Power of Typography”; Betty Cooke and William O. Steinmetz Design Chair at MICA Ellen Lupton , author of “Thinking with Type”; Chair of the Graphic + Interactive communication department at the Ringling School of Art and Design Kimberly Elam , author of "Grid Systems: Principles of Organizing Type.”

Throughout the course, we’ll supply you with lots of templates and step-by-step guides so you can go right out and use what you learn in your everyday practice.

In the “ Build Your Portfolio Project: Redesign ,” you’ll find a series of fun exercises that build upon one another and cover the visual design topics discussed. If you want to complete these optional exercises, you will get hands-on experience with the methods you learn and in the process you’ll create a case study for your portfolio which you can show your future employer or freelance customers.

You can also learn with your fellow course-takers and use the discussion forums to get feedback and inspire other people who are learning alongside you. You and your fellow course-takers have a huge knowledge and experience base between you, so we think you should take advantage of it whenever possible.

You earn a verifiable and industry-trusted Course Certificate once you’ve completed the course. You can highlight it on your resume , your LinkedIn profile or your website .

All open-source articles on design principles

The principles of service design thinking - building better services.

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Principle of Consistency and Standards in User Interface Design

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• 3 years ago

Hick’s Law: Making the choice easier for users

KISS (Keep it Simple, Stupid) - A Design Principle

The Key Elements & Principles of Visual Design

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Visual Hierarchy: Organizing content to follow natural eye movement patterns

An Introduction to Usability

Symmetry vs. Asymmetry - Recalling basic design principles

Contextual Design

Visual Aesthetics

Service design - design is not just for products.

Activity Theory

Responsive design: best practices.

Design checklists: What type of designer are you?

15 Guiding Principles for UX Researchers

The Seven Simple Principles of Conversion Centred Design (CCD) and How to Use Them

Industrial Design

Philosophy of interaction, the pareto principle and your user experience work.

• 4 years ago

Tactile Interaction

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Design Principles – A List of the Principles of Design

When you start learning graphic design theory, you may be surprised to find out that there are specific rules you need to follow when designing.

Those rules are known as design principles, and in this article, you will learn the basics of the 13 design principles.

Knowing what design principles are will give you a better understanding of how to go about creating more harmonious designs and better user experiences.

Here is what we will cover in this guide:

• What are design principles?
• White space

What Are Design Principles?

Design principles are a strict set of rules.

Designers adhere to those rules to create pleasant user experiences and visually appealing end products.

These rules are tools and guidelines that help the designer create a sense of harmony and balance in their designs.

They guarantee usability and an overall pleasing effect for viewers and users.

The 13 Principles Of Design

Every design element on a page has a different weight, depending on its size, shape, or color.

That weight is known as visual weight .

Balance in design is how you arrange and position elements in a composition, and it's about distributing the weight of those elements.

A composition lacking in balance means that one element overpowers all the rest.

To create balance, you need to position elements properly.

For example, this could be that an element on one side is much 'heavier' than the rest and is overpowering, thus making the design look unstable.

There are two types of balance:

• Symmetrical balance
• Asymmetrical balance

With Symmetrical balance , think of drawing an invisible, vertical line down the center of the page and splitting the page into two sides.

The items on both sides of the line have evenly distributed visual weight and create a mirrored image.

The order, the position, and the alignment of elements are equal on both sides, creating consistency in the design.

Asymmetrical balance is the opposite of symmetrical balance.

Elements on both sides have different arrangements, as they also have an order and positioning that varies in the composition.

Even though each side has a different visual weight, the overall design maintains an equal visual weight on both sides.

There is no mirrored image, and both sides look different, but the design is still stable.

For example, asymmetrical design can be when three lighter elements stacked on top of one another on one side balance out one single heavier item on the opposite side.

Asymmetrical balance creates visual interest and adds a modern feel to the design.

Variety creates visual interest and prevents the design from becoming monotonous and predictable.

Variety is created by using elements that are not similar to one another.

With the use of the variety, you have a good chance of maintaining the interest and engagement of viewers.

Variety in design is achieved with the use of many different things, a few of which are:

• Varying sizes,
• Varying shapes,
• Varying colors,
• Varying textures,
• Varying typography.

The purpose of emphasis is to create a focal point.

A focal point is an object that stands out instantly and grabs the viewer's or user's attention at first sight.

When there is an emphasis on a design element, it means that the specific object is highlighted from the rest and is therefore of great significance and importance.

For example, you can think of emphasis as some text with all-caps and a bold type.

Emphasis can be the main heading on a website.

It can also be a message of some kind.

You may want to convey something crucial or cautionary to your viewers and need to make sure that your audience is aware of it and focuses on that first.

Emphasis can also be a large button with a bright color under an item for purchase - this can act as a call to action for visitors.

It's what you want others to notice first - the essential information someone needs to be aware of and pay attention to upon first viewing your work.

It's a specific piece of content that needs to stand out from the rest of the design.

Besides text and color, emphasis is achieved with size, shape, weight, texture, and position, to name a few.

When creating emphasis, make sure that you do it without disturbing the overall balance of the composition and without creating an overpowering and jarring effect.

While emphasis is about accentuating one single element, contrast has to do with the apparent, stand-out degree of difference between two or more design elements that are close together.

This difference can be that one element has a dark background color, and the other has a light one.

It can also be that one element has a cooler tone, whereas the other has a warmer tone. Or that one element is larger and the other is smaller in size. Or using a serif font on some text and a sans-serif text on another piece of text.

For example, take this webpage.

When browsing the page from a desktop computer or a laptop, you will see that at the top right corner, there are two buttons you can click on:

• the 'Forum' button has a dark background color that is the same as the rest of the navigation bar,
• the 'Donate' button has a bright yellow background color that makes it stand out.

That is considered contrast. There are two very different elements next to one another, but one catches the eye the most and demands your attention.

All-in-all, contrast highlights two totally opposing elements with highly different characteristics. The difference has to be a noticeable one.

There are different types of contrast, such as color contrast or size, shape, or texture contrast.

The purpose is to create variation and interest and therefore create focus and emphasis while maintaining balance in the design.

Good contrast goes hand in hand with accessibility best practices and creating usable products and services for everyone. It's necassary to take into consideration people with visual impairments.

Think of another example.

Say there is an element with a light grey background and some dark grey text. Then, there is another element with the same background color, but there is some black text.

Which one is easier to read? The second one with the black text.

There is a higher color contrast between the background color and foreground (text) color.

There is a lack of contrast in the first element - this makes reading the text much harder.

Hierarchy organizes visual elements in order of importance.

The role of hierarchy in design is to create a visual ranking system according to the logical priority of content. It helps guide viewers from the most important information to the least important by creating a logical flow and arrangement of that content.

Think of the typical order of elements on a webpage.

We read from top to bottom, so the viewer's eye must be first drawn immediately to essential information before they start scrolling down the page.

So this means that the crucial information needs to be at the top of the page - it needs to be the most prominent and rank the highest on the page.

Take the following example.

At the top of a webpage, there is typically the company logo first.

Then, there is a navigation bar or dropdown menu, which helps users decide the area of the site they want to interact with.

There can also be a search bar for users to enter keywords to search for a specific topic and save time.

Then, there can be a call to action or the main heading that reinforces the purpose of the page and its content.

Then, there can be the main area that would contain a subheading with some text, then another subheading with more text, and so on.

This order creates visual organization and helps viewers distinguish what content appears to be the most important and deserves their attention.

It guides viewers from the start of the content to the end - from highest priority to least priority.

The position of elements signifies importance - the most important information is always higher on a page, whereas if something is at the bottom, it is not as important.

Other ways to create hierarchy in design are using colors to create contrast and alternate the sizing of elements in different ways.

Without hierarchy, all content would appear the same, and nothing would stand out and signal importance, which would lead to confusion for viewers.

Repetition is when a specific element is repeated multiple times throughout the design.

The role of repetition in design is to create consistency and unity.

Repetition creates relationships and associations between seemingly separate and different elements and creates a bond between them - a common link that ties everything together.

To achieve repetition, you use the same particular color or the same color scheme multiple times throughout the design.

Or stick to a specific font type or use a recurring phrase throughout the page.

A commonly repeated element in designs is a logo, which plays a critical part in creating a brand identity.

A logo will make viewers and users familiar with the brand. They will recognize and distinguish its voice and tone from other brands.

Users will memorize and identify the logo with the company's vision and mission.

They will know what the brand is all about.

Pattern at first glance appears to be very similar to repetition since it implies that elements reoccur multiple times throughout the page.

However, they have significant differences.

While repetition deals with the same element repeating throughout the design, a pattern focuses on multiple and different design elements repeating in the same way throughout the composition.

A pattern in design is all about the repetition of more than one element.

An example of a pattern in everyday life is floor tiles and wallpapers.

An example of a pattern on the web is the use of backgrounds in websites and applications to create harmony and a cohesive feel.

Movement refers to the way the viewer's eye travels and the path it takes throughout a design.

The designer uses movement to guide the viewer around different design elements.

They create different focal areas for each point in time to effectively capture the viewer's attention, moving from one element to another in a well-thought-out directed sequence.

Typically, the viewer's eye first sees the most important element, then the second most important, then the third one, and so on.

An example of movement can be viewing a spiraling staircase when you are standing at the top - your eye will move along the different lines and edges.

Movement on the web can be created by:

• The use of animated effects,
• The use of blurring effects,
• The use of spiraling effects,
• The use of lines and edges,
• The use of different direction signs that provide guidance, indicating to the viewer to move their focus to the left, right, or look downwards or upwards.

Rhythm involves the combination of repetition, variety, and movement.

Rhythm is how multiple design elements that are different from each other repeat in a particular order.

Repeating or alternating a group of different elements in the same order and at specific intervals is a way to create rhythm in design.

There are five different types of rhythm in design, depending on the type of interval:

• Random rhythm,
• Regular rhythm,
• Flowing rhythm,
• Progressing rhythm,
• Alternating rhythm.

The elements follow a tempo and move and flow in an organized way.

It resembles the feeling of following a dance choreography or moving to the beat of some music.

Instead of bringing the attention to only one area of the design or guiding the viewer from one different part to another, rhythm focuses on moving the viewer's eyes across the whole composition.

Proportion in design refers to the size and visual weight of two or more visual elements.

Proportion is also the relationship between those visual elements.

The relationship is based on size. It's how the size of one object compares and is correlated to the size of the other object.

Essentially, it is how elements scale in size in relation to each other.

For example, proportion compares and measures the importance of elements to one another.

Say there are two objects - one is bigger and the other is much smaller.

The bigger element will be more noticeable, which indicates that it is more important than the smaller one.

A well-proportioned design means that the size of all the elements preserves balance, unity, and harmony for the whole design.

Good proportion means that all elements relate well to each other.

Alignment refers to how visual elements are lined up, ordered, and structured in comparison to one another and in comparison to the whole design.

It is a way to create a connection and visual flow between related objects and create a more unified result in the design.

By aligning the different visual objects, you help guide your viewer throughout the design.

The most common forms of alignment are left-aligned, right-aligned, and center-aligned.

Unity in design is how different visual elements come together to create cohesion and completeness in the design and a harmonious effect.

With unity, seemingly different items create a sense of 'oneness'. This can be achieved in a few different ways.

For example, elements of different sizes can all have the same color and be near one another.

This makes them appear as if they belong together or as if they are related and are similar in some way.

White Space

White space is also known as negative space .

Essentially, white space refers to areas that lack visual elements, and areas with unused, empty space around already existing elements in a design.

White space doesn't necessarily mean that the empty space is white in color - it can be any color. It more so refers to the emptiness and available room in your design and the fact that some areas don't contain anything.

White space is about not adding any elements to the composition and takes a more minimalistic and simplistic approach to design. Sometimes, less is indeed more.

White space creates breathing room in the design.

When a lot is going on on a page, viewers can easily become overwhelmed with all the information they need to take in. White space helps to prevent that from happening. It makes any available text more readable and creates an all-around better user experience.

White space eliminates any unnecessary clutter and creates a focal point. So, use white space around important elements to make them stand out.

Hopefully, now you have a high-level understanding of design principles and have a better idea of how to implement them in your future designs.

Thanks for reading!

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11 Elements of Design and How to Use Them

Elements of design are the parts of your work of art that you arrange and craft to create visually pleasing designs. It’s important to be aware of how these basic principles work together to find your way towards stunning designs more easily. 

Use elements of design principles to guide you and to understand how design works but don’t see them as a strict set of rules. Good design still requires creativity, which means that rules can be bent or broken. 

Even if you’re not a graphic designer, it’s important to have a good grasp of these principles. Whether you’re creating display ads, a logo for your business , or a sales brochure, create engaging and more impactful graphics that draw customers in by using elements of design.

The line is the most basic element of design. Drawing a line with your pencil is how you get started with a painting or sketch and in graphic design any points that are connected form a line. This is also called an actual line while the edge between two shapes forms an implied line. 

Lines can vary in thickness, be smooth, rough, continuous, or broken. They can have different directions such as vertical, horizontal, diagonal, curved, or move up and down across a page in a zigzag pattern.

Use Elements of Design to Pick a Focus

You can use lines to offset parts of your design and draw the eye to a particular area or focal point. In advertising, guide the audience to the main object or product you want to sell. Emphasize design elements with bold lines and use thin lines for decoration. If you want to establish a more personal connection, appeal to your target market with lines that mimic handwriting.

Color immediately stands out in any design. Depending on the type or shade, you can use colors to emphasize elements or evoke certain feelings. Choosing the right colors is crucial when you’re trying to tell a story with your design.

Make sure you know the fundamentals of color theory to  choose colors that complement each other . Look at different hues, saturation, and brightness before you make a selection. Consider which color space you need to work in and what the best practices are for print or screen use.

Color as a Vehicle for Emotions

The emotions colors can evoke are an incredible tool for advertising. Make sure the colors you pick for your ad design conjure up the feelings in your audience that you want them to associate with the product. Find different  appealing color combinations  that help you to get your message across to your customers. Use a  color scheme for your website  that evokes emotions that fit with your overall brand message.

A shape is any space that is enclosed by lines. There are geometric shapes like a square, an oval, and a triangle, or organic shapes like speech bubbles, a blob, or any irregular free-form shapes.

Just like colors, different shapes conjure up different feelings. More rounded shapes create natural and calm emotions while sharp edges grab attention. Squares convey rigidness, triangles energy, and circles fluidity. Use shapes to create patterns, textures, or symbols depending on the relationship you construct between them.

Attract Attention with Shapes

For logo designs, create dynamic visuals with layered patterns or use shapes as stand-alone visual elements. For call-to-action buttons on your website, experiment with various shapes combined with different colors that stand out. See which combination works best. 

When you look at space within your design, you’re viewing all the areas within, around, above, or below the objects you placed on your canvas. Space can both connect and separate elements. Establish narrow spaces between elements to create a connection and wider spaces to convey separation. Both ways generate a design flow.

Space can be positive or negative. Negative space is also called white space, which helps to group and organize elements. Use white space wisely to create a layout that doesn’t overwhelm viewers and gives their eyes places to rest.

Establish Structure with White Space

In  web design , users expect a consistent use of white space to create layouts where the navigation, logo, and footer are in the same spot on every page. Use white space in advertising to avoid intricate and complex visuals for a more accessible design keeping the focus on the product. 

Texture in design is usually an implied feeling of a tangible surface taken from real life. Although we can’t experience these textures in a tactile way, using these kinds of effects recreates and brings life to your composition. The only way to make texture tangible again is to use textured paper like felt or velum for printed designs. 

Use texture to create a focal point, contrast, or help with balance. Replicate a natural environment through texture to craft a more three-dimensional appearance. This makes your design more immersive.

Explore Contrasts with Different Textures

Both natural and artificial textures can draw people in, so decide what fits best with your brand message. Natural textures bring vivid beauty to your design while the mix of surrealistic patterns and 3D effects of artificial textures generates new and unique styles.

Framing helps you to organize the information in your design. A frame can be a basic or decorative border around objects to guide the eyes towards a focal point. Use frames to zoom in and crop your composition or to create a visual balance.

There are several framing techniques you can try out. For example, insert a border within a frame on your canvas to create a multi-dimensional effect and make the elements within that inner border the focus of your design. You can also experiment with text, icons, or textures as framing devices around objects.

Spruce up Your Visuals for Social Media

These techniques can guide you to create aesthetically pleasing visuals for social media that stop your audience from scrolling. More advanced designers go against the structure of a frame on purpose sometimes to make their design look “off” to grab attention. When creating graphics for social media,  follow graphic design trends  to keep visual content fresh for your feed.

7. Typography

Typography includes the fonts used to arrange text in your design, the spacing of the letters, their size, and their weight. Type helps you to convey words and ideas in your design but it also goes beyond that when designers use fonts to create striking visual elements.

Use typography to create structure. To avoid complexity, a user-friendly design doesn’t use more than two different fonts at a time. When you  design a logo for your business , choose a font style that tells your brand’s story. To narrow down your selection process, have a look at the three major categories of typefaces that most fonts belong to. See whether serif, sans-serif, or a decorative style fits best with your brand and do your research within one category.

Good Copy Needs Great Design

For your advertising campaigns, good copy is essential but typography is as important as color when it comes to generating certain emotions. Emphasize words by making them bold or adjusting the color to make them stand out. You can also try something new and show your skill and passion as a designer by using  trending fonts .

Scale refers to the relationship between two or more objects and how they are seen in comparison to each other. The focus here is on the different sizes of various elements in your design. 

Scale affects your entire composition and can have a big impact on meaning and tone. Use scale to tell a story and create a hierarchy to direct the eyes and take viewers on a visual journey.

Explore Scale to Create Eye-Catching Visuals

For professional content, subtle differences in scale are often sufficient whereas creative projects give you more room to play around in. Depending on the type of project you’re working on, use scale to add interest to your design. For example, in advertising, experiment with both extremes of using an oversized or a miniature object without any other elements added to put the focus on a single product on your promo poster. 

9. Hierarchy

Hierarchy creates a structure within a design. If everything stands out, nothing stands out, so you can see hierarchy as a way of prioritizing objects in your design. It’s used to show the relationship between elements and guides the eye along a specific order.

For example, when you create an object with sharp corners and a distinct color in front of a pale rounded object, you make it clear that the sharp-edged object is more important than the rounded one. When using typography in your design, you can create a hierarchy by using a larger and bolder font style for your heading than for your subheading.

Put Elements in Order for Ease

Use visual hierarchy in your marketing materials to make it easier for your target audience to scan your content and determine what’s important to them easily. Keep this in mind for your website to draw the eyes of site visitors to the most important information and calls to action.

10. Balance

When designers talk about balance, they’re working on getting the visual harmony and order right within their designs. If creating tension is your goal, creative freedom allows you to bend the rules and craft unbalanced layouts.

Balance also includes the concepts of symmetry and asymmetry. Most designers prefer experimenting with asymmetry due to its eye-catching effect and the contrast it creates. 

Experiment with Attention-Grabbing Layouts

Depending on the outcome you want to achieve with your marketing campaign, you can play around with balance and symmetry. For example, your layout may be symmetrical but can be unbalanced at the same time, or you could place elements randomly within your asymmetrical layout and still create a perfectly balanced overall design. Both combinations can be used to create an interesting design that catches attention.

11. Harmony

You know your design is complete when all the pieces work together smoothly. The combination of elements with a visually satisfying effect is called harmony. A good harmonic design is clean and undisruptive.

Combine and arrange adjacent colors, similar shapes, and related textures to achieve harmony. Be sure to select shades from your color palette that balance each other out. Consistency is also part of harmony. For example, if you’re using typography, be consistent by selecting not more than two fonts to use across one design.

Craft Relationships between Elements

When you set out to create a harmonic design for your marketing campaigns, use elements that are not completely different but stand in some kind of relationship with each other. This can be the distance between objects or proximity, how they seem repeatable with other elements or their similarity, or creating a sense that there’s a pattern or continuation.

Elisabeth Strasser

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Course info.

• Prof. Martin Culpepper

Departments

• Mechanical Engineering

As Taught In

• Project Management

Learning Resource Types

Elements of mechanical design, assignments, images and video.

You must take pictures/video of parts, fabrication processes and experiments as you go. This includes pictures of every part you make, all sub-assemblies (e.g. spindle, carriage, etc.) and then the finished lathe. You must take:

• At least one 10ish second video per part wherein some critical fabrication step is being conducted (e.g. turning)
• At least one 30ish second video per sub-assembly describing how each was assembled, problems in assembly, etc.
• At least one 60ish second video per test describing how each test was conducted and showing a result (e.g. run-out)
• At least one 30ish second video showing both axes working as the lathe cuts aluminum

These images/video will be due in soft copy on the day their corresponding hardware/results are due. If you need access to a digital camera, the TA will provide one, but you must schedule this in advance and the camera may only be checked out for 24 hours.

Design Notebook

Do not use a spiral notebook, you must use a Lab Notebook. You must keep a dedicated design notebook so that you may store all of your ideas, calculations, and records in one organized place. You must bring your notebook to all 2.72 events. Notebooks will be collected at the end of the semester and then used to generate final grades, so please make sure they are legible and organized! Any loose papers must be stapled or glued in; no loose papers will be included in the grading. We encourage you to paste in pictures of the parts when appropriate. No 3-ring binders will be accepted.

Gantt Chart

Your group must have a Gantt chart that includes all course milestones, assignments, team, and design lab meetings with Prof. Martin Culpepper.

Design Verification Tests/Experiments

“Experience does not ever err; it is only your judgment that errs in promising itself results which are not caused by your experiments” — Leonardo da Vinci

You will be responsible for generating the design of your experiment, modeling/understanding/estimating the errors in your experiment, and creating the hardware that is required for you to measure:

• Spindle error motions (dx, dy, εx, εy, as a function of θz) on the shaft and on a part in the chuck
• Carriage error motions (dx, dy, εx, εy, εz as a function of z) as it travels along the z axis, or
• Cross slide error motions (dy, dz, εx, εy, εz as a function of x) as it moves long the x axis

You must use the CMM to characterize items 2 and 3. You may check out a 3-ball metrology fixture, consisting of three finely polished balls attached to a plate that should be mounted to the part that is being characterized, with the centroid of the balls located at a point of interest. By measuring the center of each ball at a specific location along the travel, you may identify the plane that contains the three ball centers, the centroid of the triangle that contains the centers and the normal vector to the plane. This is sufficient to calculate all of the error motions.

You must create a spreadsheet or equivalent simulation tool that calculates the error motions given the center point of the three balls. Bring this to the CMM training and measurement sessions so that you may key in your data and immediately see the results. This way you will know if you are getting reasonable results from your experimental setup! You can also use the spread sheet to see how sensitive the measurement set up is, given the errors in the CMM (very important).

Process Plans for Parts (Template PDF )

“Good plans shape good decisions. That’s why good planning helps to make elusive dreams come true.” — Lester Bittel

Before you fabricate a part, you must first meet with the Shop Manager to discuss how to make the part. You must schedule a meeting with him to obtain approval. Remember, he is busy with many classes so contact him early. Everyone who will work on the part must attend the meeting. You must then generate a process plan (see template) and keep this plan in your design notebook. When you go to fabricate the part, you must give the process plan to the Shop Manager for final review.

At a minimum, your group must bring the following to this meeting:

• 2D printed, CAD drawing with dimensions and tolerances (hand sketches are not allowed)
• 3D printed rendering of the part (e.g. screen capture from CAD)
• Properly scaled DXF on disc or e-mailed to the Shop Manager if your part is to be waterjet
• Major steps that you will take to make the part, including fixturing and alignment steps
• Tooling that you will need for every step
• Measurement tools that you will need for every step
• Questions/uncertainties

The Shop Manager must sign off on the top of the sheet and after the part is made, the process plan must be handed in to Prof. Martin Culpepper, at the D-lab meeting following the completion of the part(s). Process plans will be graded and supporting information (see items a and b above) must be stapled to the plan while item c (if applicable) must be emailed to Prof. Martin Culpepper.

Your group will need to schedule separate process plans for:

You need to move fast!!!! If your group does not make these dates/deadlines, this will be reflected in your grades.

Final Report

A final report of 6 pages (not including appendices) is required. The purpose of the report is for you to convince the staff that you learned and used the course material properly. The contents of the report are up to the group; however it would be reasonable to include descriptions of your group’s activities, calculations, predictions, results, lessons learned and performance data - how did it do cutting an actual part? All reports are 12 point font, double-spaced and 1 inch margins. The reports will be due in MS Word format.

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Designing Assignments for Learning

The rapid shift to remote teaching and learning meant that many instructors reimagined their assessment practices. Whether adapting existing assignments or creatively designing new opportunities for their students to learn, instructors focused on helping students make meaning and demonstrate their learning outside of the traditional, face-to-face classroom setting. This resource distills the elements of assignment design that are important to carry forward as we continue to seek better ways of assessing learning and build on our innovative assignment designs.

On this page:

Rethinking traditional tests, quizzes, and exams.

• Examples from the Columbia University Classroom
• Tips for Designing Assignments for Learning

Reflect On Your Assignment Design

Connect with the ctl.

• Resources and References

Cite this resource: Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning (2021). Designing Assignments for Learning. Columbia University. Retrieved [today’s date] from https://ctl.columbia.edu/resources-and-technology/teaching-with-technology/teaching-online/designing-assignments/

Traditional assessments tend to reveal whether students can recognize, recall, or replicate what was learned out of context, and tend to focus on students providing correct responses (Wiggins, 1990). In contrast, authentic assignments, which are course assessments, engage students in higher order thinking, as they grapple with real or simulated challenges that help them prepare for their professional lives, and draw on the course knowledge learned and the skills acquired to create justifiable answers, performances or products (Wiggins, 1990). An authentic assessment provides opportunities for students to practice, consult resources, learn from feedback, and refine their performances and products accordingly (Wiggins 1990, 1998, 2014). 

Authentic assignments ask students to “do” the subject with an audience in mind and apply their learning in a new situation. Examples of authentic assignments include asking students to: 

• Write for a real audience (e.g., a memo, a policy brief, letter to the editor, a grant proposal, reports, building a website) and/or publication;
• Solve problem sets that have real world application; 
• Design projects that address a real world problem; 
• Engage in a community-partnered research project;
• Create an exhibit, performance, or conference presentation ;
• Compile and reflect on their work through a portfolio/e-portfolio.

Noteworthy elements of authentic designs are that instructors scaffold the assignment, and play an active role in preparing students for the tasks assigned, while students are intentionally asked to reflect on the process and product of their work thus building their metacognitive skills (Herrington and Oliver, 2000; Ashford-Rowe, Herrington and Brown, 2013; Frey, Schmitt, and Allen, 2012). 

It’s worth noting here that authentic assessments can initially be time consuming to design, implement, and grade. They are critiqued for being challenging to use across course contexts and for grading reliability issues (Maclellan, 2004). Despite these challenges, authentic assessments are recognized as beneficial to student learning (Svinicki, 2004) as they are learner-centered (Weimer, 2013), promote academic integrity (McLaughlin, L. and Ricevuto, 2021; Sotiriadou et al., 2019; Schroeder, 2021) and motivate students to learn (Ambrose et al., 2010). The Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning is always available to consult with faculty who are considering authentic assessment designs and to discuss challenges and affordances.   

Examples from the Columbia University Classroom 

Columbia instructors have experimented with alternative ways of assessing student learning from oral exams to technology-enhanced assignments. Below are a few examples of authentic assignments in various teaching contexts across Columbia University. 

• E-portfolios: Statia Cook shares her experiences with an ePorfolio assignment in her co-taught Frontiers of Science course (a submission to the Voices of Hybrid and Online Teaching and Learning initiative); CUIMC use of ePortfolios ;
• Case studies: Columbia instructors have engaged their students in authentic ways through case studies drawing on the Case Consortium at Columbia University. Read and watch a faculty spotlight to learn how Professor Mary Ann Price uses the case method to place pre-med students in real-life scenarios;
• Simulations: students at CUIMC engage in simulations to develop their professional skills in The Mary & Michael Jaharis Simulation Center in the Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons and the Helene Fuld Health Trust Simulation Center in the Columbia School of Nursing; 
• Experiential learning: instructors have drawn on New York City as a learning laboratory such as Barnard’s NYC as Lab webpage which highlights courses that engage students in NYC;
• Design projects that address real world problems: Yevgeniy Yesilevskiy on the Engineering design projects completed using lab kits during remote learning. Watch Dr. Yesilevskiy talk about his teaching and read the Columbia News article . 
• Writing assignments: Lia Marshall and her teaching associate Aparna Balasundaram reflect on their “non-disposable or renewable assignments” to prepare social work students for their professional lives as they write for a real audience; and Hannah Weaver spoke about a sandbox assignment used in her Core Literature Humanities course at the 2021 Celebration of Teaching and Learning Symposium . Watch Dr. Weaver share her experiences.  

​Tips for Designing Assignments for Learning

While designing an effective authentic assignment may seem like a daunting task, the following tips can be used as a starting point. See the Resources section for frameworks and tools that may be useful in this effort.  

Align the assignment with your course learning objectives 

Identify the kind of thinking that is important in your course, the knowledge students will apply, and the skills they will practice using through the assignment. What kind of thinking will students be asked to do for the assignment? What will students learn by completing this assignment? How will the assignment help students achieve the desired course learning outcomes? For more information on course learning objectives, see the CTL’s Course Design Essentials self-paced course and watch the video on Articulating Learning Objectives .  

Identify an authentic meaning-making task

For meaning-making to occur, students need to understand the relevance of the assignment to the course and beyond (Ambrose et al., 2010). To Bean (2011) a “meaning-making” or “meaning-constructing” task has two dimensions: 1) it presents students with an authentic disciplinary problem or asks students to formulate their own problems, both of which engage them in active critical thinking, and 2) the problem is placed in “a context that gives students a role or purpose, a targeted audience, and a genre.” (Bean, 2011: 97-98). 

An authentic task gives students a realistic challenge to grapple with, a role to take on that allows them to “rehearse for the complex ambiguities” of life, provides resources and supports to draw on, and requires students to justify their work and the process they used to inform their solution (Wiggins, 1990). Note that if students find an assignment interesting or relevant, they will see value in completing it. 

Consider the kind of activities in the real world that use the knowledge and skills that are the focus of your course. How is this knowledge and these skills applied to answer real-world questions to solve real-world problems? (Herrington et al., 2010: 22). What do professionals or academics in your discipline do on a regular basis? What does it mean to think like a biologist, statistician, historian, social scientist? How might your assignment ask students to draw on current events, issues, or problems that relate to the course and are of interest to them? How might your assignment tap into student motivation and engage them in the kinds of thinking they can apply to better understand the world around them? (Ambrose et al., 2010). 

Determine the evaluation criteria and create a rubric

To ensure equitable and consistent grading of assignments across students, make transparent the criteria you will use to evaluate student work. The criteria should focus on the knowledge and skills that are central to the assignment. Build on the criteria identified, create a rubric that makes explicit the expectations of deliverables and share this rubric with your students so they can use it as they work on the assignment. For more information on rubrics, see the CTL’s resource Incorporating Rubrics into Your Grading and Feedback Practices , and explore the Association of American Colleges & Universities VALUE Rubrics (Valid Assessment of Learning in Undergraduate Education). 

Build in metacognition

Ask students to reflect on what and how they learned from the assignment. Help students uncover personal relevance of the assignment, find intrinsic value in their work, and deepen their motivation by asking them to reflect on their process and their assignment deliverable. Sample prompts might include: what did you learn from this assignment? How might you draw on the knowledge and skills you used on this assignment in the future? See Ambrose et al., 2010 for more strategies that support motivation and the CTL’s resource on Metacognition ). 

Provide students with opportunities to practice

Design your assignment to be a learning experience and prepare students for success on the assignment. If students can reasonably expect to be successful on an assignment when they put in the required effort ,with the support and guidance of the instructor, they are more likely to engage in the behaviors necessary for learning (Ambrose et al., 2010). Ensure student success by actively teaching the knowledge and skills of the course (e.g., how to problem solve, how to write for a particular audience), modeling the desired thinking, and creating learning activities that build up to a graded assignment. Provide opportunities for students to practice using the knowledge and skills they will need for the assignment, whether through low-stakes in-class activities or homework activities that include opportunities to receive and incorporate formative feedback. For more information on providing feedback, see the CTL resource Feedback for Learning . 

Communicate about the assignment 

Share the purpose, task, audience, expectations, and criteria for the assignment. Students may have expectations about assessments and how they will be graded that is informed by their prior experiences completing high-stakes assessments, so be transparent. Tell your students why you are asking them to do this assignment, what skills they will be using, how it aligns with the course learning outcomes, and why it is relevant to their learning and their professional lives (i.e., how practitioners / professionals use the knowledge and skills in your course in real world contexts and for what purposes). Finally, verify that students understand what they need to do to complete the assignment. This can be done by asking students to respond to poll questions about different parts of the assignment, a “scavenger hunt” of the assignment instructions–giving students questions to answer about the assignment and having them work in small groups to answer the questions, or by having students share back what they think is expected of them.

Plan to iterate and to keep the focus on learning 

Draw on multiple sources of data to help make decisions about what changes are needed to the assignment, the assignment instructions, and/or rubric to ensure that it contributes to student learning. Explore assignment performance data. As Deandra Little reminds us: “a really good assignment, which is a really good assessment, also teaches you something or tells the instructor something. As much as it tells you what students are learning, it’s also telling you what they aren’t learning.” ( Teaching in Higher Ed podcast episode 337 ). Assignment bottlenecks–where students get stuck or struggle–can be good indicators that students need further support or opportunities to practice prior to completing an assignment. This awareness can inform teaching decisions. 

Triangulate the performance data by collecting student feedback, and noting your own reflections about what worked well and what did not. Revise the assignment instructions, rubric, and teaching practices accordingly. Consider how you might better align your assignment with your course objectives and/or provide more opportunities for students to practice using the knowledge and skills that they will rely on for the assignment. Additionally, keep in mind societal, disciplinary, and technological changes as you tweak your assignments for future use. 

Now is a great time to reflect on your practices and experiences with assignment design and think critically about your approach. Take a closer look at an existing assignment. Questions to consider include: What is this assignment meant to do? What purpose does it serve? Why do you ask students to do this assignment? How are they prepared to complete the assignment? Does the assignment assess the kind of learning that you really want? What would help students learn from this assignment? 

Using the tips in the previous section: How can the assignment be tweaked to be more authentic and meaningful to students? 

As you plan forward for post-pandemic teaching and reflect on your practices and reimagine your course design, you may find the following CTL resources helpful: Reflecting On Your Experiences with Remote Teaching , Transition to In-Person Teaching , and Course Design Support .

The Columbia Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) is here to help!

For assistance with assignment design, rubric design, or any other teaching and learning need, please request a consultation by emailing [email protected] . 

Transparency in Learning and Teaching (TILT) framework for assignments. The TILT Examples and Resources page ( https://tilthighered.com/tiltexamplesandresources ) includes example assignments from across disciplines, as well as a transparent assignment template and a checklist for designing transparent assignments . Each emphasizes the importance of articulating to students the purpose of the assignment or activity, the what and how of the task, and specifying the criteria that will be used to assess students. 

Association of American Colleges & Universities (AAC&U) offers VALUE ADD (Assignment Design and Diagnostic) tools ( https://www.aacu.org/value-add-tools ) to help with the creation of clear and effective assignments that align with the desired learning outcomes and associated VALUE rubrics (Valid Assessment of Learning in Undergraduate Education). VALUE ADD encourages instructors to explicitly state assignment information such as the purpose of the assignment, what skills students will be using, how it aligns with course learning outcomes, the assignment type, the audience and context for the assignment, clear evaluation criteria, desired formatting, and expectations for completion whether individual or in a group.

Villarroel et al. (2017) propose a blueprint for building authentic assessments which includes four steps: 1) consider the workplace context, 2) design the authentic assessment; 3) learn and apply standards for judgement; and 4) give feedback. 

References 

Ambrose, S. A., Bridges, M. W., & DiPietro, M. (2010). Chapter 3: What Factors Motivate Students to Learn? In How Learning Works: Seven Research-Based Principles for Smart Teaching . Jossey-Bass. 

Ashford-Rowe, K., Herrington, J., and Brown, C. (2013). Establishing the critical elements that determine authentic assessment. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. 39(2), 205-222, http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2013.819566 .  

Bean, J.C. (2011). Engaging Ideas: The Professor’s Guide to Integrating Writing, Critical Thinking, and Active Learning in the Classroom . Second Edition. Jossey-Bass. 

Frey, B. B, Schmitt, V. L., and Allen, J. P. (2012). Defining Authentic Classroom Assessment. Practical Assessment, Research, and Evaluation. 17(2). DOI: https://doi.org/10.7275/sxbs-0829  

Herrington, J., Reeves, T. C., and Oliver, R. (2010). A Guide to Authentic e-Learning . Routledge. 

Herrington, J. and Oliver, R. (2000). An instructional design framework for authentic learning environments. Educational Technology Research and Development, 48(3), 23-48. 

Litchfield, B. C. and Dempsey, J. V. (2015). Authentic Assessment of Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes. New Directions for Teaching and Learning. 142 (Summer 2015), 65-80. 

Maclellan, E. (2004). How convincing is alternative assessment for use in higher education. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. 29(3), June 2004. DOI: 10.1080/0260293042000188267

McLaughlin, L. and Ricevuto, J. (2021). Assessments in a Virtual Environment: You Won’t Need that Lockdown Browser! Faculty Focus. June 2, 2021. 

Mueller, J. (2005). The Authentic Assessment Toolbox: Enhancing Student Learning through Online Faculty Development . MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching. 1(1). July 2005. Mueller’s Authentic Assessment Toolbox is available online. 

Schroeder, R. (2021). Vaccinate Against Cheating With Authentic Assessment . Inside Higher Ed. (February 26, 2021).  

Sotiriadou, P., Logan, D., Daly, A., and Guest, R. (2019). The role of authentic assessment to preserve academic integrity and promote skills development and employability. Studies in Higher Education. 45(111), 2132-2148. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075079.2019.1582015    

Stachowiak, B. (Host). (November 25, 2020). Authentic Assignments with Deandra Little. (Episode 337). In Teaching in Higher Ed . https://teachinginhighered.com/podcast/authentic-assignments/  

Svinicki, M. D. (2004). Authentic Assessment: Testing in Reality. New Directions for Teaching and Learning. 100 (Winter 2004): 23-29. 

Villarroel, V., Bloxham, S, Bruna, D., Bruna, C., and Herrera-Seda, C. (2017). Authentic assessment: creating a blueprint for course design. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. 43(5), 840-854. https://doi.org/10.1080/02602938.2017.1412396    

Weimer, M. (2013). Learner-Centered Teaching: Five Key Changes to Practice . Second Edition. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. 

Wiggins, G. (2014). Authenticity in assessment, (re-)defined and explained. Retrieved from https://grantwiggins.wordpress.com/2014/01/26/authenticity-in-assessment-re-defined-and-explained/

Wiggins, G. (1998). Teaching to the (Authentic) Test. Educational Leadership . April 1989. 41-47. 

Wiggins, Grant (1990). The Case for Authentic Assessment . Practical Assessment, Research & Evaluation , 2(2). 

Wondering how AI tools might play a role in your course assignments?

See the CTL’s resource “Considerations for AI Tools in the Classroom.”

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Principles of Design (One-Day Lesson Plan)

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2023 - 2024 Standards HSE.HS.26.1.a - Identify the elements and principles of design. HSE.HS.26.1.c - Apply the principles of design.

Nebraska Family and Consumer Science Standards

Learning Domain: Design

Standard: Illustrate the application of elements of design.

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Standard: Illustrate the application of principles of design.

Standard: Explain how to use elements and principles of design for the best aesthetics.

Nebraska Communication and Information Systems Standards

Learning Domain: Digital Design

Standard: Apply color theory principles.

Standard: Demonstrate knowledge in page layout (e.g.,negative space, alignment, symmetrical, asymmetrical).

Standard: Demonstrate knowledge in page layout (e.g., negative space, alignment, symmetrical, asymmetrical).

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Elements of Design Assignments and grading sheets.

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All assignment and exercises are worth 5% of your total points for the whole semester. You will receive your grade after all exercises are turned in. Assignment 1         Assignment 2         Assignment 3

Assignment 1. A study on visual elements and design principles

Collect quality graphic design work (in any form or media) that demonstrates the power of the visual elements and design principles. Then write down your comments for each design. Note: Don’t use any other form of art. Don’t use photography, craft, painting, drawing, art foundation course work, etc.

Requirements

Create a Pinterest board named “AVT311 Assignments”. You will upload or pin all your assignments onto this board. Please organize your Assignment 1 into two sub-sections – “Assignment 1 Elements” and “Assignment 1 Principles”. Don’t forget to indicate the name of the elements and principles at the beginning of your comment. Two good samples. sample 1 , sample 2 .

1. Select at least two existing graphic designs to demonstrate the use of each visual element: Dot, Line, Shape, Space (4×2=8).

2. Choose at least five design principles, then find two graphic designs primarily used the same design principle for each of the five principles (5×2=10). Gestalt design principles: Similarity         Continuation         Closure Proximity         Figure and Ground         Alignment Other principles: Balance (Symmetry & Asymmetry)         Repetition Contrast (of Size, Color, shape)        Direction Radiation         Gradation         Anomaly Economy         Dominance         Emphasis

3. Analyze each design and write down your comments.

Deliverables

Pin your images along with your comments onto your Pinterest “AVT311 Assignments” board. Due: Tuesday, January 28th (at the beginning of the class)

Assignment 2. Design Elements Exploration

All graphic design centers on manipulating form. Every form you make in design has to be chosen carefully so that you convey the correct message to your intended audience. In this exercise, you will explore different forms and apply meaning to them.

Parameters:

You must use the Worksheets for this exercise. (Note: There are two sheets) You must sketch in pencil. You cannot use color. You have to convey what your form means.

Upload you finished two worksheets onto your Pinterest “AVT311 Assignments” board.

Due: Tuesday, Feb. 4th (at the beginning of the class)

Assignment 3. Design Elements and Principles Exploration

The principles of design help you to carefully plan and organize the elements of art so that you will hold interest and command attention. This is sometimes referred to as visual impact. In this exercise you will explore the basic elements of design. You should use the principles of design to help you organize your composition.

Working within a 6-x-6-inch square on computer (Adobe Illustrator is preferred) You may further develop your ideas from Assignment 2 Create two designs for each problem One color per design You have to convey what your form means

Upload each piece of your work onto your Pinterest “AVT311 Assignments” board and label them.

Goals and Problem

Problem 1 Dot: Create 2 compositions using only dots.

Problem 2 Line: Create 2 compositions using only lines.

Problem 3 Shape: Create 2 compositions using only one shape. You may use multiple copies of your selected shape, but it must remain the same size.

Problem 4 Scale: Create 2 compositions using a single letterform. Examine the forms and counter forms of the letter or the unique qualities of your chosen shape.

Isolate just enough of each letter to hint at its identity. Strike a balance between positive and negative space.

Due: Tuesday, Feb. 18th (at the beginning of the class)